1.3 The first Civilisations - T -

• History
• Middelbare school
• havo, vwo
• Leerjaar 1

AGE 1: The Time of Hunters and Farmers

1.3 The first civilisations

theory

- T -

In this lesson :

1. The first cities rose in Mesopotamia
2. The annual flooding of the two rivers Euphrates and Tigris made the surrounding land fertile.
3. Both Sumerians and Egyptians believed that the flooding was the work of gods.
4. Farmers used irrigation to water their land. 
5. Successful farming led to a surplus of food. 
6. Surplus was used to trade for other items. 
7. Because of the surplus, not everybody needed to be a farmer. Some people specialised in a craft.
8. Trading and bartering took place in markets.
9. As the population increased, villages grew into cities.
10. Sumer and Egypt became the first civilisations.

Chronology:

3,500 BC - 1900 BC: Sumerian civilization

3,100 BC - 30 BC: Egyptian civilization

From 30 BC Egypt fell under Roman rule.

Introduction

In the Middle East and in North Africa, farmers lived in villages close to rivers. They were able to produce so much food that some of them could specialise in art, trade, religion, writing or warfare. Eventually the villages grew to become the first cities.

The land between two rivers

Farming started in the Middle East. The ancient city of Uruk, in modern-day Iraq, was once one of the biggest cities on the planet. It must have been a beautiful place, with temples, workshops and markets. Thousands of people lived there. But today, it lies lost in the sands of the desert. How could the inhabitants of Uruk live in such a dry place? And what happened to them?

Archaeologists discovered that the first inhabitants of Uruk were farmers. They lived in one place, grew crops and raised animals. For growing their crops they needed fertile soil and water.

Around 3500 BC, the landscape around Uruk was different from how it is now. The city was not built in the desert, but close to two rivers: the Euphrates and the Tigris. The ancient Greeks named this area Mesopotamia, which means ‘the land between two rivers.’

Source 1.5.2

This Standard was found in the Sumerian city of Ur. It showes farmers and shepherds with their cattle and harvest (c. 2600 - 2400 BC).

Source 1.5.1

Map of the Fertile Crescent, and the insert map shows that cities like Ur and Uruk were in the south east of Mesopotamia.

Teacher's Tip:

If you need to write DIFFERENCES in your answer it is important that you ALWAYS mention BOTH things that you are comparing.

For example: What is the difference between a fish and a bird?

WRONG ANSWER: "a bird has feathers"

CORRECT ANSWER: " a bird has feathers and a fish has scales"

Fertile floods

Once in a while these two big rivers flooded. A great amount of water then covered the land and destroyed everything in its path. But these rivers did not only cause destruction. The Euphrates and the Tigris also transformed the desert into a green land covered with grass and trees. When the water level dropped, a dark layer of silt (clay) stayed behind on the riverbank. This clay was so fertile that the farmers of Mesopotamia chose to grow their crops there. And they truly grew fast! No wonder these farmers saw these rivers as life-giving miracles.

The three steps in the flooding of the Euphrates River are shown below. First the water is low, then it covers the riverbanks. Finally it leaves pools of water and fertile ground so the farmers can grow their crops.

Source 1.5.3

Three steps in the flooding of the Euphrates River (present-day drawing).

The Sumerians studied the stars to understand the changing of seasons and to predict the floods of the rivers. They tried to calculate when the floods would occur. This is how they started calculating time. The number twelve was important to them. Nowadays one day is still two times twelve and a year has twelve months.

Floods caused by the gods

The farmers of Mesopotamia and Egypt depended on the river. They grew their grain on its banks and built houses from the clay. They believed that the floods were caused by the gods. These gods could punish the farmers by changing the flow of the river. Some years the river would not rise high enough and there could be a drought. Without the water, crops would fail and because of this people would die of famine.

Some other years, the water level could be too high and it then destroyed the fields and houses so people would drown. In both situations the people in Mesopotamia and Egypt would respond by praying to the gods for a better flood next time.

Source 1.5.5

The river Nile today. The flooding is regulated by dams.

Source 1.5.4

Sobek, the Egyptian god of the Nile, half man, half crocodile

An abundance of food

Once in a while these two big rivers overflowed. The farmers of Mesopotamia soon found that they could use the river to their own benefit. They dug small canals to spread water further inland. We call this irrigation. Thanks to irrigation, water could flow to areas that were dry before. In this way they turned it into fertile land.

Because of irrigation and the fertile silt, farmers were able to produce more food than they could eat. Of course these farmers did not throw this agricultural surplus away. Instead they used it to trade with each other. There was so much food that some people didn’t even have to be farmers at all. Some of them could do other jobs. So if someone was good at baking pots he could specialise in that craft and become a potter. Another might become a craftsman like a goldsmith, a carpenter or a shoemaker. These craftsmen traded their products with farmers. For example: a pair of shoes for grain or a necklace for a cow. This is what we call bartering.

Source 1.5.6

A craftsman made these basket shaped hair ornaments of gold (around 2000 BC).

Source 1.5.7

Sumerian craftsmen working

Teacher's Tip:

If a question asks you to "use the source" it is important that you do that. 

If the source is a picture, you can describe what you SEE. You can start your answer with: 

"In the source I see......", or: "The source shows...."

If the source is a text, you can copy a passage from that text. You can start your answer with:

"The source says:"......."

Villages become cities

Just as today, trading and bartering occurred at markets. Craftsmen and traders showed their wares at stands. Farmers came there to trade their crops or their cattle. Year after year more craftsmen built their workplaces and houses near the market.

They were followed by shop owners, innkeepers and priests who built temples to honour the gods.

The population grew and more people wanted to live in the villages.

Because of this the villages grew to become cities. At that moment the society changed: not everyone worked as a farmer anymore. Some people chose to live and work in the city. The Sumerians in Mesopotamia were one of the first groups of people to have an agricultural-urban society.

Source 1.5.8

A trader tells a scribe (schrijver) about the products and amounts he is trading. In the back is a Sumerian Ziggurat (a temple tower). 

(present-day drawing).

Sumeria and Egypt: the first civilizations

Uruk was not the only city in Mesopotamia. In years, many cities arose. They waged war against each other, but they mostly worked together. These cities adopted the same culture. They had the same language, writing, laws, art and religion. Because of this we speak of a civilisation. Uruk and the surrounding cities belonged to the civilization we call Sumeria.  In Sumeria every city had its own leader. The leader of the strongest city could name himself king of Sumeria.

In Egypt another civilization arose around the Nile River. The Egyptians also relied on the flooding of the river and some lived in cities. Their king was called a Pharaoh, and he was worshipped as a god.

The Sumerians and the Egyptians influenced the other countries around them. Through war and trade their culture was spread throughout the Middle East.

Source 1.3.2

Artist’s reconstruction of the Sumerian city of Ur

(IMAGE by Artefacts Berlin)

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Word Duty

1. Mesopotamia: fertile area in the Middle East; Greek for ‘land between two rivers’.
2. Fertile land: land or soil that is rich in nutrients so plants can grow.
3. Irrigation: artificial way to spread water across farmland to make it fertile.
4. Agricultural surplus: when farmers produce more food than they can eat.
5. Specialise: when someone becomes very good at one thing, for example: making tools.
6. Craftsman: someone who makes products with his hands and tools. For example: a carpenter.
7. Bartering: exchange goods or services directly for other goods or services.
8. Markets: places where people come to barter their products.
9. Sumeria:  one of the earliest known civilizations, specifically in the southern part of Mesopotamia. 
10. Agricultural-urban society: society in which the majority of people live as farmers, while the minority live in cities.
11. Culture: things people think and do, such as religion, traditions, art, clothes and language.
12. Civilization: highly developed society.
13. Pharaoh: the king of ancient Egypt.

KEY WORDS

What you can do or explain after this lesson

• what a creation narrative is
• what the evolution theory is
• how both theories are used to explain where humans come from
• what the "Out of Africa" theory means
• how you can  read the family tree of   modern humans
• what paleontologists and archeologists do

TEST YOURSELF

What you can explain or do after this lesson:

1. what Mesopotamia was
2. draw Mesopotamia in a map.
3. name the three important rivers in Mesopotamia
4. draw Sumeria and Egypt in a map
5. why the rivers were important for farmers
6. why people prayed to the gods
7. how irrigation led to a surplus of food
8. how a surplus of food led to specialisation
9. how specialised jobs led to (barter) trade in markets.
10. how the first cities rose
11. what a civilization is.

congratulations